Ernst Bloch and the Marxist Legacy

CALL FOR PAPERS

The categories of not-yet and hope are at the very core of Ernst Bloch’s philosophy. The utopian dimension of Bloch’s thought has made him widely known beyond the Marxist context but also controversial to the more orthodox materialist thinkers. Although some attempts to reconsider Bloch’s Marxist legacy have already been made (e. g. Hudson 1982; Daniel and Moylan 1997), a serious study of his thought from the Marxist perspective remains unfinished.

The main aim of the conference is to re-examine Bloch’s work with regard to Marxism understood both as a historical tradition and contemporary critical framework. Bloch’s thought and political activity - including texts on such themes as fascism and the Popular Front, non-synchronism, the relation between religious movements and emancipation or the objective aspect of hope - demand a critical inquiry. It is our strong belief that the return to his ideas could be especially fruitful nowadays, with the rising authoritarian tendencies around the world and the urgent need of rethinking the forms of class struggle in the reality of late capitalism.

To submit, send an e-mail to [email protected]. Please include your name, affiliation, title of the presentation and an abstract about 200 words long. Talks should be no longer than 20 minutes. The deadline is March 31st, 2018.